Eye Catching Things at Euro 2012

I know the Euros haven’t quite finished, but with one match to go I thought I’d tell you the 5 things that have caught my eye over the last couple of weeks.

1. Pirlo. This guy was available on a free transfer recently – people thought he was too old. But he’s been a revelation. He’s always running towards the ball, always giving 110%, always “wanting” it (he’s very not staff basically). Now he’s odds on before the final for player of tournament. How naive of teams not to mark him closer just because they think he’s old and slow!

2. John Terry. Yes he’s an odious creature but boy can can he defend. Most notably, he seems to be ranked no 1 in England’s new defensive policy of blocking shots on goal (rather than pressing, marking, depriving possession etc).

3. Spain’s Forwards. All the reports you read say it’s important to maintain squad harmony to do well at a tournament. Well in Spain’s case, their superstar striker David Villa was injured. Rather than trying to replace him, they just played no forwards. What does that say about them?

4. Ronaldo. Ronaldo is a great player and all that rah rah rah. But how on earth did he not / was he not made to take an early penalty in the shootout against Spain? I can’t help but think he was glory hunting in wanting the “winning” penalty, even though they’re all just as important as each other.

5. How quickly opinions change. A week ago, everyone was saying Germany were brilliant; now everyone’s saying they were outclassed and didn’t have the quality to live with the Italians. England went in with no expectation; after winning the group they had high expectation. Now they’re back to no expectations. And Spain! In the last two tournaments people were calling them the best ever. Now there are rumblings that they’re a bit boring? Jesus – what have you done for me lately!